Extras take garden home from basic to spectacular

Taking a garden home from basic to spectacular takes just a few simple additions and a lot of attention to detail.

For example, opening up the entryway with double doors rather than a single door gives the home’s entrance a grander feel.

“It’s a very simple change,” said builder Curtis Travis. “But it makes a huge impact.”

Travis and his business partner Harrison Taylor built this brand-new 1,580 square-foot home in Murphy Place. It is one of a dozen new homes in the newly developed subdivision, however, this one stands out—in a very understated, subtle way.

It attracts passers-by without them even knowing why. And for that reason, it sold even before it was completed.

The all-brick exterior sets a higher standard at first glance. Many garden homes in this price range have brick on the front and vinyl siding on each side and the back to reduce costs.

Having an all-brick exterior gives the home a high-end look. Travis and Taylor added extra touches, such as the keystone over each window on the front of the house.

The addition of the keystone is so subtle that most people couldn’t point it out, but the keystones add a punch that makes it more appealing.

“I tried to focus on details that didn’t make it seem like just a first-time buyer home,” Travis said. “I wanted to show that it was different.”One difference in this home is the molding, which gives a room a finished look. High baseboards give the illusion of higher ceilings.

However, Travis and Taylor used a clever, money-saving technique and added chair rail molding a few inches above the baseboard, which tricks the eye into thinking the baseboard is even higher.

In the kitchen, they made a few simple changes from the original plan to give the kitchen a much nicer, pulled together look.

Instead of Formica countertops, they installed Hi-Mac, a less expensive cousin of Corian and a step up from Formica, which instantly gives the kitchen a more custom look.

Another extra in the kitchen is under-the-cabinet lighting — a must for a warm atmosphere. It’s a minor addition that has a major impact on the kitchen’s overall mood and function.

Pendant lighting — a very unexpected feature for a house in this price range — serves as an invisible boundary for an open kitchen between the work area and eating area.

The kitchen cabinets also have been up-graded. Instead of simple high gloss white, they chose a custom rubbed glaze for an updated look.

The see-through fireplace between the living room and dining room is a spacing-enlarging feature as well as a dynamite architectural detail.

The keystone over the fireplace repeats the look of the home’s exterior and gives the style continuity.

For the flooring, Travis and Taylor chose an 18-by-18-inch ceramic tile that mimics the look of travertine stone for the kitchen, entry and bathrooms.

Using the same tile throughout the house creates style continuity. In smaller spaces, using a larger tile, adds grandeur and makes a space seem larger.

Hardwood in the living room and dining room adds a pleasing dimension and is consistent with the wall color.

The paint colors they used on the walls throughout the home are warm neutrals in the golden-beige family. Warm neutrals are comforting and blend well with almost all furniture styles and colors.

What defines a garden home is the size of the lot not the house, however, garden homes do tend to be smaller and in a lower price range than traditional single-family dwellings.

Bigger does not always mean better. While larger homes are fast becoming the norm, many people don’t want 6,000 square feet to clean and heat and cool.

Architectural details are the great equalizer. Those details humanize a space whether large or small and make it easier to decorate.

Architectural details make it possible to create a cozy, livable and inviting environment.